assessment
/əˈsɛsmənt/
noun
Origin
Latin
assidere — to sit beside, to assist in the office of a judge
Overview
Meaning Now
- The action or an instance of evaluating, estimating, or judging the nature, quality, or ability of someone or something.
- The determination of the amount of a tax or other payment to be paid.
Literal older meaning
sitting beside
Language path
Latin → Old French → English
Earliest form
assessment
Earliest period
16th century
Journey
The term originated from the practice of assessors sitting beside a judge to assist in determining the value of property for tax purposes. Over time, the scope of 'assessment' expanded from strictly financial or legal tax evaluations to broader academic, professional, and psychological evaluations.
Evolution
- Classical Latin
assidere
“to sit beside or assist a judge”
From ad- 'to' + sedere 'to sit'
- Late Latin
assessus
“the act of sitting beside/assessing”
- Old French
assess-
“action of fixing or taxing”
- Early Modern English
assessment
“valuation of property for taxation”
First recorded in the mid-16th century
Connections
Word parts
assess
root
to evaluate or tax
-ment
suffix
state or process
Related across languages
French
asseoir
to sit
Italian
assedere
to sit beside
Explore next
Related to assessment
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.